1
: something (such as an advertising promotion) intended to entice or allure
2
: a usually sexual advance
came on; come on; coming on; comes on
1
a
: to advance by degrees
darkness came on
b
: to begin by degrees
rain came on toward noon
2
a
: please
—used in cajoling or pleading
b
—used interjectionally to express astonishment, incredulity, or recognition of a put-on
3
: to project an indicated personal image
comes on as a conservative
4
: to show sexual interest in someone
also
: to make sexual advances
—usually used with to
tried to come on to her
Synonyms
Examples of come-on in a Sentence
Noun
the spectacular sale was enough of a come-on to get many shoppers to try the store for the first time
Recent Examples on the Web
Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2023
The whole ride, she’s been pursing her lips and meeting his gaze in the rearview mirror in ways that some men might take as a come-on.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 3 Sep. 2023
Or the Hollywood sign, originally a real-estate come-on and the site of an early movieland suicide.
—John Anderson, wsj.com, 25 Apr. 2023
And though Jaxton is an obvious skeeve, decentering his maleness only as a kind of tantric come-on, Foley does it so well that the character is somehow attractive.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2023
The show's diva/icon/legend/the-moment-now-come-on is Ni'Jah, whose entire aesthetic and many major life and career achievements are lifted directly from the life of one Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2023
Giveaways, gimmicks, and novelty come-ons of all sorts proliferated.
—Thomas Doherty, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Mar. 2023
This sort of blanket approach targets a common practice among robotexters, which is to use different numbers (real or spoofed) to originate successive come-ons or phishing attempts.
—Jon Healey, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Mar. 2023
But she isn’t intimidated by the brothers, illustrated early on by her initial rebuff of Albert’s come-on.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Mar. 2023
Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 31 May 2024
The Thunderbolt siren first came on the market in the 1950s as a Cold War-era air raid siren and was later reissued as a multipurpose warning system for all kinds of disasters, both natural and man-made.
—Cody Copeland, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 31 May 2024
And when relievers Adam Cimber and Matt Moore came on and combined to let Cleveland score three more runs in the sixth inning, the Angels could have predicted their fate and accepted it.
—Mirjam Swanson, Orange County Register, 26 May 2024
Branham’s first run came on a fielding error in the second inning.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 24 May 2024
Miller departed with a 5-4 lead, the go-ahead run coming on Tommy Molina’s two-out homer in the seventh.
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 May 2024
The police response to the encampment came on the same day that UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, who has led the university amid months of tense protests over the Israel-Hamas war, testified before a congressional hearing on campus antisemitism.
—Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
The development came on the same day a federal judge postponed Hunter Biden's Los Angeles trial on tax charges until Sept. 5 -- raising the likelihood that a jury could be deliberating whether to convict the president's son on several felony counts in the waning weeks of the 2024 election.
—Lucien Bruggeman, ABC News, 22 May 2024
And two, come on, folks, check your phone later and get out of your parking space!
—Dp Opinion, The Denver Post, 21 May 2024
Noun
Books Is Madonna a game-changing feminist or capitalist come-on?
—Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2023
The whole ride, she’s been pursing her lips and meeting his gaze in the rearview mirror in ways that some men might take as a come-on.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 3 Sep. 2023
Or the Hollywood sign, originally a real-estate come-on and the site of an early movieland suicide.
—John Anderson, wsj.com, 25 Apr. 2023
And though Jaxton is an obvious skeeve, decentering his maleness only as a kind of tantric come-on, Foley does it so well that the character is somehow attractive.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2023
The show's diva/icon/legend/the-moment-now-come-on is Ni'Jah, whose entire aesthetic and many major life and career achievements are lifted directly from the life of one Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2023
Giveaways, gimmicks, and novelty come-ons of all sorts proliferated.
—Thomas Doherty, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Mar. 2023
This sort of blanket approach targets a common practice among robotexters, which is to use different numbers (real or spoofed) to originate successive come-ons or phishing attempts.
—Jon Healey, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Mar. 2023
But she isn’t intimidated by the brothers, illustrated early on by her initial rebuff of Albert’s come-on.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Mar. 2023
Verb
Of those 11 points, seven have come on either game-tying, game-winning or go-ahead goals.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 31 May 2024
The Thunderbolt siren first came on the market in the 1950s as a Cold War-era air raid siren and was later reissued as a multipurpose warning system for all kinds of disasters, both natural and man-made.
—Cody Copeland, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 31 May 2024
And when relievers Adam Cimber and Matt Moore came on and combined to let Cleveland score three more runs in the sixth inning, the Angels could have predicted their fate and accepted it.
—Mirjam Swanson, Orange County Register, 26 May 2024
Branham’s first run came on a fielding error in the second inning.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 24 May 2024
Miller departed with a 5-4 lead, the go-ahead run coming on Tommy Molina’s two-out homer in the seventh.
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 May 2024
The police response to the encampment came on the same day that UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, who has led the university amid months of tense protests over the Israel-Hamas war, testified before a congressional hearing on campus antisemitism.
—Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
The development came on the same day a federal judge postponed Hunter Biden's Los Angeles trial on tax charges until Sept. 5 -- raising the likelihood that a jury could be deliberating whether to convict the president's son on several felony counts in the waning weeks of the 2024 election.
—Lucien Bruggeman, ABC News, 22 May 2024
And two, come on, folks, check your phone later and get out of your parking space!
—Dp Opinion, The Denver Post, 21 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'come-on.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near come-on
Cite this Entry
“Come-on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/come-on. Accessed 6 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
come on
intransitive verb
: to be brought forward (as a case in court)
the first prize case of the war…came on for trial—W. G. Young
W. G. YoungLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share